The Smithsonian’s National Zoo’s Giant Panda Cam made a comeback to the Internet Thursday following 16 days of panda-monium, or as others know it, the government shutdown.

Now that cuteness has returned to the Internet, so have many other things funded by the federal government. While the Panda Cam may be the most important return, here are some other highlights of the federal government reopening:

1. Federal labor force:

With the shutdown over, federal employees all over the country are back on the job providing a variety of services we count on, including those enumerated above. What’s more, the federal government is the nation’s largest employer. With the return of funding also comes the paychecks and benefits needed to support millions of families and numerous state and local economies. On a positive note, Congress did agree to pay back all federal workers furloughed during the shutdown. That should partially soften the blow of their inability to watch the Panda Cam during their time off.

2. National parks and monuments:

More than 400 national parks and monuments are now open, which in turn brings back employees that were left jobless during the shutdown. It got to the point where a few states were using their own funds to reopen sites because of the hit the local economies were taking: $362,700 to reopen and manage the Rocky Mountain National Park for 10 days and $369,300 to reopen and manage the Statue of Liberty. Additionally, people were simply unable to enjoy the natural beauty of the parks, not to mention the Panda Cam.

3. Food safety:

Now that the shutdown is over, the American public will be better informed about foodborne illness risks. During the shutdown, the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were unable to investigate all but the highest risk outbreaks because many of the investigators were furloughed. If pandas were human, they could have contracted E. coli or something during the shutdown, but who would know, because the Panda Cam was off-air.

4. Research funding:

Federal funding for universities and other organizations around the nation engaged in vital research has been restored. On our own campus, various agriculture-oriented research, such as the Soybean Free Air Concentration Enrichment, came to a complete halt during the shutdown because of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s inability to provide funding. Some professors were unable to conduct research due to a lack of funds while other projects were left in the hands of graduate students. And for those of you doing your own personal research on panda behavior, you couldn’t do that because the Panda Cam was down.

5. Environment:

Vice President Joe Biden was so happy with Environmental Protection Agency workers flooding back into work, he welcomed them back with muffins. Why should you share Biden’s glee? You can rest assured that EPA employees are back on the job making sure the air you breathe and water you drink are clean. Hopefully the pandas were being hydrated with some clean water.

6. NASA:

NASA employees are back at work with the shutdown over. Only three percent of NASA’s workers were allowed to work to ensure safety of human life and property. This meant all pending spacecraft and satellite launches were halted. Just like the broadcast of the Panda Cam.

Panda Cam aside, the public should not take federal government functions for granted. As seen during the shutdown, there were many vital programs that were either put on hold or nearly halted (such as food stamps and federal courts) that affect many of our day-to-day lives. Government funding at pre-shutdown levels only runs through Jan. 15, 2014. In other words, this could happen again unless Congress makes it a priority over the next three months to resolve their differences and come up with long-term budgets that will ensure regular operations essential for national stability.

We’re hoping Congress is able to have a peaceful bipartisan relationship so the Panda Cam doesn’t tragically get shut down with the government again.